Watford man calls for answers as families demand justice over Chinook disaster
Andy Tobias and other families want full transparency ahead of historic meeting with government ministers
The families of victims of the RAF Chinook disaster on the Mull of Kintyre in 1994 have published 225 new safety-critical questions about the crash, bringing the total of unanswered queries to 335.
The tragedy claimed the lives of 29 people, including Andy Tobias’ father, Lt Col John Tobias. Andy, who is from Watford, has been campaigning alongside other families for over 30 years to uncover the truth behind the crash.
The Chinook Justice Campaign has released the new questions ahead of a historic meeting with three defence ministers and the victim’s minister tomorrow.
It will be first time in 31 years that government ministers have agreed to meet the families face-to-face, following persistent public and parliamentary pressure.
Andy Tobias said: “These 335 questions are certainly not definitive. They are not all we need answered, and the files that are closed for 100 years are only some of the papers we want released.
“What this long list makes clear, however, is that it is simply untenable for ministers to say there is nothing new to learn.
“We want full transparency, full candour, and to finally start getting to the full truth. We expect nothing less from our meeting with ministers tomorrow. Do they choose to be on the right side of history - or the wrong side of it?”
Government accountability questioned
Campaigners argue that crucial evidence was withheld from the six previous inquiries into the crash, including warnings from test pilots and engineers that the Chinook Mark 2 was unairworthy and should not have been used for the mission.
David Hill, a former Ministry of Defence aeronautical engineer and technical adviser to the Chinook Justice Campaign, said: “These 225 new questions destroy the argument that there is nothing left to uncover.
“Together with the original 110, they expose how essential evidence was concealed from previous inquiries and demonstrate that the Ministry of Defence has never provided full transparency into the circumstances that led to the deaths.”
Adding: “The suggestion that no new facts will be uncovered is a deliberate misrepresentation to cover up past wrongdoing.”
New promises under scrutiny
The Government has pledged to introduce a new duty of candour on public bodies through the Hillsborough Law, officially known as the Public Office (Accountability) Bill. Supporters say the Chinook disaster should be the test case for this commitment.
The families hope the meeting will lead to the Prime Minister:
• Overruling the Ministry of Defence to order a public inquiry
• Allowing access to all Chinook crash-related files, including sealed ones
• Making the Chinook crash a key case for the new Hillsborough Law
A decision is also pending from the High Court on the families’ application for a Judicial Review of the government’s refusal to hold a public inquiry under Article 2 of the Human Rights Act, which protects the right to life.
Andy Tobias said: “We hope that the fact that the victims' minister is joining the meeting with MoD ministers is a signal that the government is now ready to follow through on its promise of candour in our case and the others like it.
“We have already built up an unsavoury treasure trove of MoD documents, test pilot warnings, and evidence withheld from earlier investigations which prove my father and 28 others were put on an aircraft the MoD knew to be unairworthy.
“This is not my opinion. These are facts the Ministry of Defence either ignored, buried or refused to disclose. We have been forced to fight for the truth for 31 years. Now we expect answers.”
Accident investigated six times already
An MOD spokesperson said: “The Mull of Kintyre crash was a tragic accident, and our thoughts and sympathies remain with the families, friends and colleagues of all those who died.
“We understand that the lack of certainty about the cause of the crash has added to the distress of the families.
“The accident has already been the subject of six inquiries and investigations, including an independent judge-led review”.
Adding that ministers “will be meeting with representatives from the Chinook Justice Campaign before the end of the year, to listen to their concerns first hand.”